The tenor of anti-American bigotry is becoming ludicrous. Even ten years ago, a friend of mine was beaten senseless while traveling through Belfast for being a "lousy Yank". He had been biking by himself, not causing any problems, as witnesses attested. One of the participants in the beating (in fact, the one that dragged my friend off his bike) explained that he'd always had a problem with Yanks "because they abandoned their own people".

Then yesterday, I had the same charge thrown in my face by a Scotsman.

Now granted, people in the US have to be extremely angry to make such a remark to someone. We (the actual people, not the multi-national slum lords that own us) see prying into someone else's culture as rude and intrusive. We'd ONLY make such a comment if we were in an argument, so you can imagine how angry I must be to respond.

I really have to point out as a student of American and European history, AMERICANS OF COLONIAL BRITISH DESCENT DIDN'T LEAVE THEIR OWN COUNTRY ANY MORE THAN SOMEONE MOVING FROM CALIFORNIA TO HAWAII SEES HIMSELF AS MOVING TO ANOTHER COUNTRY! I'm SO TIRED of hearing this. What's more, about 1/3 of my family included Scots-Irish slaves who were brought to the colonies AGAINST THEIR WILL.

In fact, if anybody abandoned anybody, it was the UK that abandoned us when the bridge went out, but there are extenuating circumstances that one would hope thinking people MIGHT observe.

Secondly, today, I ran into yet another anti-American nugget that drives me nuts -- the notion we are "more violent" than Europe. Nonsense. Do we have more crime than any single European country? With one exception (Scotland), we do, however we also have EIGHT TIMES the population of most European countries! The US has a population density comparable to Europe, NOT to a single nation. We aren't one country, we are fifty of them, and some of the states have a FRACTION of the violence of any European country.

And here's the big one -- READ IT AND WEEP -- GEORGE BUSH IS MORE POPULAR IN EUROPE THAN HE IS IN THE USA -- BY FAR! In fact, he's always had a much higher percentage of European admirers than he has American ones, which is only right since the man is a hot house flower of European royals. Americans, by and large, detest him -- the real numbers are in more academic polls that see him ranking well below Nixon in popularity.

Guess what, the US is just like every other country -- we have our problems, but we also have our assets. We've done bad things, but we've also done many good things. And many of the "bad things" we've done hand-in-hand with our brothers in Europe.

We're all just people -- each of us no better or worse than any other.

It has been nearly twenty years since that miserable piece of political polemic, CHESS, was written -- which (had it been written about ANY OTHER nationality) would have been outlawed in its country of origin. Hating Americans has become a very popular sport -- we've become the favored scapegoat for the sins of the west.

My family came here 350 years ago at its oldest point (I'm English, Irish, Scots and Cherokee, so a number of us also met the boats). We've as much a right to pride in our heritage as any other nationality. I cling to the good we've done and hope for better in the future. Would that all nations might say the same.

Why? Very simply -- there was only one reason to watch this thoroughly silly show, but it was a reason strong and sweet enough to save it from TV dreckdom. It was the only reason any of my friends and I watched the show. What was it? Why the subtext -- the relationship -- the UST! On the Flying Nun, you ask???????

Damn straight: I give you Sister Bertrille and Carlos Ramirez. I usually point to other 'ships as my first 'ship, simply because this seems a taboo one, but this really WAS the first 'ship I followed. I can still recall my best friend Audrey and I sighing over Carlos' wistful murmur (when he was flying around in his plane -- Carlos needed a plane to fly -- looking for the lost Sister Bertrille), "I tell you to go away and then I go looking for you." Then we have Jenny Ethrington's (Sister B's sister) warning to Carlos (when he was dating her) that, "I'm not my sister, Carlos." Yea, verily, we saw it all the time, but it would be many years later before I read about what drove the series off the air.

Yup, the young girls (who comprised the viewership of the show) wanted something the Church would not allow (and they were a heavy influence on the series) -- for Sister Bertrille to leave San Tanco and run off with Carlos.

Come to that, several years later, Sally Field and the late Alejandro Rey (who played Carlos) were to have their comeuppance when they starred as Clementine and her suitor in the old series "Alias Smith and Jones". There was even to be a Love Boat episode in which Alejandro would play "Carlos Ramirez" and Sally would be the love interest, but that was apparently quashed by a "higher power".

Ha! But in fandom, we have our revenge -- and the last word on the topic. There is a TFN fandom (and I'm sorry, but a flying nun is no stranger than a flying Kansas farmboy) and it's 90% Carlos/Elsie (Elsie was Sister Bertrille's real name). All my 40-something friends can now have our fan fic guilt-free. :) It's one way I stay young.

With that, I give you ... Carlos/Elsie the Web Site:

http://elsieramirez.fanfictiononthenet.com

Poll #751105 Carlos/Elsie
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All

Are you an Elsie/Carlos believer?